A FORMER soldier has taken the plunge for charity aiming to break a world record by staying underwater for five days.

Ex-Royal Engineer Mark Colman, of Corringham, Essex, is aiming to stay submerged in a water tank for 120 hours in a bid to raise £500,000 for Veterans in Action (VIA), a charity which he says has changed his life.

It is the first time he has dived for more than a decade after he lost a friend in an underwater accident.